Tiffany Wins $19 Million Against Costco in Ring Trademark Case

Jewelry maker Tiffany & Co. won a $19 million award against Costco Wholesale Corp. for selling engagement rings that were improperly displayed with Tiffany’s trademarks (Tiffany & Co. v. Costco Wholesale Corp., 2017 BL 283685, S.D.N.Y., 13-1041, 8/14/17).

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York’s award was based on punitive damages of $8.25 million, plus a tripled-profits calculation of $11.1 million. The profit was calculated based on average jewelry store profits, even though Costco’s per-unit profits are lower—a higher amount that the court found justified because Costco makes much of its income from membership ...